Arab & Islamic Politics

As Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak prepares for his upcoming trip to Washington, the United States is not the only strategic partner whose ties with Israel may be tested by violence in the West Bank and Gaza. In an era when Turkeys defeat of the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) and

"It is clear that whoever wins the race to the White House is going to put even less pressure on Israel than Bill Clinton [has done]. Al Gore, because with Joseph Lieberman as his vice-president, there will be an emotional commitment to it. George Bush Jr., because there will be

While the international media focus on the Israeli-Palestinian fighting in the West Bank and Gaza, at least 600 Africans have been killed in riots in Libya. The massacre of African immigrants may have wider reverberations and foster important changes in Libya's foreign policy. Since his return to the international stage

Yesterday, the text of a draft communiqué for the impending Arab summit, principally drafted by host Egypt, was leaked to the Beirut press. In an interview about this document, Egyptian foreign minister Amre Moussa indicated that this draft was accurate but preliminary. If this version emerges from the summit relatively

As rumors swirl regarding a possible Arab League summit meeting in Cairo later this month, preparations are underway for a major event on the Egyptian domestic scene: the holding of parliamentary elections. This vote, set to occur over three stages from October 18 to November 14, will be the first

Last Sunday, the world breathed a sigh of relief as the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) Central Council voted to postpone a declaration of statehood until at least November 15, 2000. Less noticed, however, has been the internal battle over what is perhaps the second most important political issue on the

President Clinton will again meet his two Camp David partners--though not yet in scheduled three-way talks during this week's Millennium Summit, six weeks after the conclusion of their inconclusive Camp David negotiations. In the August interval, each side sent leaders and diplomats jetting about Europe, Asia, and the Middle East

Last week, a seemingly arcane argument produced a political crisis in Turkey that set back, at least temporarily, the government's longstanding anti-Islamist campaign. What began as a dispute over constitutional interpretation of presidential powers embittered relations between the nation's two top officials-President Ahmet Necdet Sezer and Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit-to

Previous public opinion polls conducted in the Arab East, especially in the Levant, have revealed that "inching toward peace" with Israel has not produced definitive changes in Arab perceptions. Instead, the peace process seems to have given rise to a kind of resignation born of a pervasive sense of helplessness